Former Vice-President of Nigeria, Atiku Abubakar has submitted a memorandum to the National Assembly, advocating for constitutional amendments that would establish a six-year single term for the presidency and governorships in Nigeria. He proposes that the presidency rotate between the North and South regions of the country.
In his recommendations to the Senate Committee on Constitutional Review, Atiku reiterated a proposal he first put forth during his tenure under former President Olusegun Obasanjo. He stated, “The office of the President shall rotate among the six geopolitical zones of the federation on a single term of six years, flowing between the North and South on the single term of six years respectively.”
Atiku urged the National Assembly to amend Section 135(2) of the constitution to stipulate, “Subject to the provisions of subsection (1), the President shall vacate his office at the expiration of a period of six years.”
In addition, he proposed replacing the term “substituted by an aspirant” in Section 285(14)(a) with “a voter.”
Regarding educational qualifications for presidential candidates, Atiku suggested lowering the minimum requirement from the Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination to the Ordinary National Diploma. He proposed an amendment to Section 65(2)(a), stating, “He has been educated up to at least Ordinary National Diploma in any recognised academic institution.”
Moreover, he called for a new provision in Section 65(2)(a)(i) that would require candidates to submit evidence of their educational qualifications to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), or provide an affidavit in case of lost certificates.
Atiku also advocated for enhanced authority for political parties in the candidate selection process. He proposed an amendment to Section 65(2)(b), which would read: “He is a member of a political party whose name is in the register to be made available by his political party to the Independent National Electoral Commission 30 days before the conduct of the political party’s primary and he is sponsored by that party.”